Sweet Poison
by Charles RocketBoy
Summary: Jessie and James- two psychologically warped people in a relationship of love, abuse and scizohphrenic mood swings. Witness the formation of their relationship, even as they face a horror from the past that threatens to tear them both down.
1. 1

"Please let her go."  
 James' voice had begun to crack. He was going to start crying again.

  "_Please_." 

   There had to be an answer. She had to give him one. Had to.

   "Please. She hasn't done anythi-"

   "No." 

   The voice was harsh and final, allowed no reply. James tried anyway.

   "I'll do whatever the fuck you want just _let her go_!"  
   "When I am convinced you've learnt your lesson."  
   And he knew what she really meant by that. 

   How had it ever come to this?

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**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 1**

------------------------------------------------

Mummy was dead.

   And Jessie kept thinking she should feel something more than she did. But she couldn't. After all, mummy was someone she'd hardly seen anyway- just a perfect figure with shining purple hair who arrived every other week or so. The rest of the time, she was with Foster-Mummy. It was a rather hard life there, because while mummy left Foster-Mummy some money, it always ran out and Jessie had to live in poverty. 

   She got by. Then mummy went off looking for Mew and never came back.

   And that would have been that, but Team Rocket had other plans. Miyamoto had left behind a considerable amount of money to fund Jessie's education and so she was sent off to be a nurse.

    Seeing as she wasn't a Joy, she was forced into training alongside Chancey's and quickly failed. 

    But she wasn't going to stand for that. And so now she'd combined the remainders of the inheritance with the money she'd gained from a midnight jewellery store raid (even at thirteen, she had thievery figured out) and got herself into Pokemon Tech.

    She was quickly realising everyone else in the school was a wanker.

    She had to share a dorm room with three other girls who talked on and on about money, clothes, boys, blah blah blah. Rich girl stuff. Jessie wasn't interested.

    No, that was a lie. She _was_ interested- more than that, she was envious. She wanted that stuff, had wanted it for years. And these girls had it already, because they were rich and she wasn't. That on its own gave her cause to detest them but what pushed her into outright loathing was their snide gossiping and their subtle psychological warfare they played against each other. And this went on all around the school.

   And the teachers did shit. Because some of these kids had important families and it wasn't Done to discipline them. The school was a breeding ground for this, and she found herself on the receiving end several times. Pissed her off. She was now constantly three seconds away from snapping and punching someone. 

   It didn't help that the lessons were a lot more boring and pointless than she'd expected. You'd think learning about Pokemon would be _interesting_…

   And the school uniforms. Yeeeeurgh.

   _Still_, she thought as she entered the canteen, _could be worse. I could be that guy._

  'That guy' being James Morgan, a spineless rich kid constantly getting pushed around and not daring to help himself. His blue hair and camp voice didn't help either- graffiti bearing great and intelligent witticisms like "JAMES IS A FUCKING HOMO" had showed up within three days of him being there. He was the whipping boy of all.

    Weird little kid too. Nearly screamed when he first saw Jessie walking around- she never did figure out why. 

    She looked across the room and her fists started to clench. Robert Murdoch, king of the school social status and all-around fucker, and his three main friends. Judging from their sniggers and position, they were off for another round of Kick The James.

    _Not my problem. Spineless dick._

    James walked along, carrying his lunch tray and keeping his head hunched down, and that's when Robert ran up and swept the legs from under him. He went down with a crash, falling into the splattered remains of his food. 

   The whole canteen laughed and he began to cry, silently.

   "Hey, look! The little faggot's crying! Diddums!"  
   She looked at him, crawling in the mess and crying, hated and mocked. And something went snap in her mind.

    She walked calmly over to Robert and kicked him hard in the balls.

   He doubled over- a mistake, because then she slammed her knee up into his nose, turning his nose to a pulp. She jumped up and brought her foot down on his head.

    "Hey, come on! Didn't you want to start something? C'mon then! Fucking come on!" She looked up from Robert, who was lying on the floor going 'aaaarg' over and over, and over to his friends. Her mouth split into a vicious grin. "Well, come and have a go if you think you're hard enough!"  
    And one of them did think he was hard enough. A one-two punch to both eyes and one in the stomach, and he was proven wrong.

     Jessie laughed. Her head was pounding, her vision misting over with red and she felt like fire was spreading through her body. She felt alive, she felt feral, she felt like taking on everyone in the room. All the hate and frustration of the last two weeks here was burnt away, replaced by the desire to kick and punch and bite and destroy this entire shitpile.

    And then she realised the remaining boys had run off and James was looking up at her with a mixture of fear and wonder.

    She looked down at him and her lip curled back. "Smash their faces in next time, OK?"

    "OK," he whispered.

    She nodded in approval, then looked up at the silent canteen. "The **fuck**'re you looking at?!"  
    And that formed the basis for their entire relationship to come.

*********************************************************************

Jessie looked up, her face burning with hatred and homicidal intent. Many years had passed since Pokemon Tech but all they'd done was make her harder.

   "Go clean your dad's cum from your arsecrack," she snarled.

   The other figure breathed in with a hiss.

   And then the knife came out. 


	2. 2

Her face had been destroyed.

  All that had been done to her, and that was what finally broke her. She screamed and cried for nearly an hour afterwards, long after the blood had clotted over.

   Now she just hung silent, naked, humiliated and chained. 

   Inside her head, she was yelling at herself to get up, fight back, _fucking get up_. But she just hung there. She could've taken every punishment dished out to her, but her face had been sliced up. Ruined. She was ugly.

   It occurred to her this meant she was relying on James to save her. She chuckled a bit at that- relying on James? What a turn-around from the Pokemon Tech days. What a turn-around…

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 2**

------------------------------------------------

All he could do was stare. 

    Her body was formed from tight muscles, her hair was fire, her eyes were glaring jewels, her face was sharp, her breasts were… well, they _were_. She was sex, she was power, she was viciousness personified. Yeah, she looked like Jessebelle. But she wasn't like Jessebelle, she was… she…

    All he could do was stare.

    "So, um… thanks for helping me," he whispered.

    "Jimmy, you said that already." She smirked. "Brain dazzled by my beauty, is it?"  
    "Yes."

    Jessie looked away, suddenly embarrassed.

    "Sooooo… yeah, anyway, the key thing in a fight is that you want to hurt the other guy. Don't be squeamish. And you have to do it right. Punch straight, forefinger and middle finger knuckles only. Don't stop or let up until they fall, go for weakspots- joints, eyes, etc. And if you can, use your knee- hard, mind. If you can get your knee slammed into their face- they're down, you win, go nick their wallets."

    She watched him practise punching. It was embarrassing.

    So she smacked him upside the head and told him to stop being shit at it.

    And that scared him, briefly. She looked like Jessebelle and now she'd hurt him to make him be what she wanted. But then he realised that she didn't feel like Jessebelle for some reason. And he didn't know why, and wouldn't for years afterwards. It was just…

   …he didn't mind it when _she_ hurt him.

   After a while, she got him properly trained at it. She would've walked off at that point, but she wanted to avoid being found by the teachers for as long as possible, seeing as she'd kicked the shit out of another pupil and all.

    "So, where do you hang out then, Jimmy?"  
    "Usually the Nursery."  
    She frowned. "The Plant Pokemon place?"  
    "Oh yeah! It's great! You should see the Venusaur! And the Oddishes are sooooo cute!" His eyes lit up with glee. "And there's an Ekans in there somewhere, I've been looking for that for days-"

    "I love Ekans'! All that power and danger, coiled up inside a sublimely designed pattern of scale and golden eye, a thing of beauty that hides a deadly side… Almost like… me!"  
    One thing led to another and both talked like this for a while, each trying to outdo the other in flowery prose. 

    Once they actually reached the Nursery, Jessie turned morose and kicked at the grass for a bit.

    "What's wrong?" asked James.

    "None of your business."   
    (_i'm realising i've never talked with someone like that since i last saw mum_)  
    (_remembering how much we talked like that, me trying to equal & impress her_)

    (_don't fucking cry fucking don't_)

    "Anyway, where's that Ekans?"

    "Well, you said you're one," he said, smiling slightly. "You could substitute for it!"  
    Jessie smirked and arched her back, twisting herself and flickering her tongue out. "Ekansssssss," she hissed, "Ekansssssss comes to EAT YOUR SOUL!"

   "You can't take my soul, I've got it ensured! Take my spleen instead!"  
   "Ekanssssssss not like spleen! They taste like dry semen!"  
   "What's semen?"  
   Jessie paused briefly, stunned by this lack of knowledge.

   "OK, it looks to me like I'm going to have a little chat with you right now…"

********************************************************************

"I don't want to hear it."  
   Silence from the other figure.

   "I don't want you telling me what you've just done to her. Just… no."  
   Before his unwilling eyes, photographs of Jessie's torn and bloodied face were shown.

   "Oh Jesus." He felt sick. "Why are you doing this to her? Wh-"

   "Because _she's_ the reason you left me and everything else!"  
   "So was Meowth. You don't have him." James locked eyes with her, even as they filled with tears. "It's because she looks like you, isn't it? That's why you're doing this. Because she looks like you." 


	3. 3

"I'm worse at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed…"

    Jessie idly tapped on the cold stone and sung to herself, her wrists and ankles feeling the chains bite deep into the skin. She didn't have much to do. Since Jessebelle had damaged her face, she'd had no contact with anyone for two days, save for the men that were sent to clean her & the cell (because Jessebelle didn't see fit to give her a toilet or bucket) and the men sent in to do the…

    …the other things.

    "Our little group has always been, and always will be until the end…"

    She didn't want to know what that bitch was doing to James.

    There had to be way out of this. Had to be.

    "Hello, hello, hello…"

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 3**

------------------------------------------------

It was night-time, and the two of them lay on the roof of the school, watching the world go by. Months had passed, and they'd become inseparable, bonded by convenience, interests, lust and a shared anarchic contempt for their world.

   Jessie opened her mouth, shut it, thought through the sentence again and spoke.

   "Do you ever think about what you're gonna do when you graduate?"  
   James shrugged. "Technically I'd be a Pokemon Master, so I dunno. What else is there really to do in Kanto? Try and be one again? I dunno."  
   "When I was younger, I wanted to be a doctor and a famous actress and a tree. I don't remember why I wanted to be a tree. But the rest of it… Tried to be a doctor. Didn't work. No idea how you become an actress. I'm theatrically-minded, I can act and sing and dance and all that, but what do I do with it all?"  
    "When I was younger, I wanted to be a Pokemon trainer just so I could get the hell away from home."

    "Family not like your cross-dressing?"  
    "Something like that."  
    Jessie had known about his cross-dressing for a while now. First time she'd seen it had been by accident- he'd gone hysterical at being seen until she convinced him that: a) She didn't care about him doing it, and b) If he was going to do it with her clothes, she was doing it with his.

    She looked out over the Pokemon Tech grounds and suddenly felt a surge of hatred.

   "It's all shit, y'know. Not just school- everything. Who cares about Pokemon training? And what else is there to care about round here? Might as well kill ourselves now."  
   "Jess?"  
   "Might as well throw ourselves off this roof, get rid of the whole mess here and now…"  
   "Jessie, you're scaring me."  
   "Oh, grow a spine!" she snapped, whacking him in the head to emphasise her point. "Ah, I'm just thinking out loud anyway. I just dunno what I want to do."

   "I don't care as long as I'm with you," said James, and felt hot embarrassment claw at him as soon as he said it.

    "Nice to know someone appreciates my beauty!"  
    "The world would just be a worse place if two god-like beauties like us remained apart instead of united as one! The world needs us!"  
    "Yes! We must protect it from the devastation that would result in lack of fashion sense and sexiness! It is our duty!"  
    "And so on! Hurrah!"  
    They fell silent again. James looked back up at the sky, after stealing a quick glance at Jessie. 

   Every time he saw her recently, he felt odd. Hot and self-conscious. He kept wondering what she would be like naked, about sex. And he got worried about this, because he was afraid he might screw up and she wouldn't want to be his friend anymore, or break his kneecaps in disgust. 

   That was what he did, wasn't it? Screw things up? Screw things up and have to be punished for it? 

    But god, he didn't want to screw this up. Without it he would kill himself and be glad to die. Because there literally was nothing else for him. Nothing of worth.

    And to his right, Jessie knew he was glancing at her and liked it. About damn time someone noticed her that way. About time anyone noticed her at all- she was sick of being ignored, sick of people not noticing how talented and beautiful and great she was, the fucking dismissive bastards. They all wanted to bring her down, to place her firmly down at the bottom where they could act superior to her- no-one besides mummy and foster-mummy and Chancey ever believed she could do anything great. 

    Well, James did. He noticed how great she was. That was enough, for now. But she'd soon show the world.

     And she didn't realise how dependent on him she was becoming.

    "Ah, we'll make it, me droogie," she said. "We'll make it."  
    "We are the undeniable, irrepressible Jessie and James, and the world is our mollusc."  
    "Yeah."

*********************************************************************

He was starting to crack.

    If Jessie was here, he could handle everything that was thrown at him. If he knew she might show up at any moment, he wouldn't feel so defeated.

   But she wasn't and she wouldn't. Instead, she was being tortured and degraded by Jessebelle.

  Jessebelle. The nightmare that clawed up at him from the pit of his mind, the horrible It that took the form of his friend and lover, and then used that form to do terrible things to him.

   Anger rushed through him. Anger because she tortured him while looking like Jessie. Her very existence was shitting on his friend.

   He had to find a way out of this. There had to be a way out. Had to be.


	4. 4

There wasn't a way out. 

   He could hear Jessebelle coming. He knew where this was going. She'd let him and Jessie spend four days down in her little dungeon, separated and with James knowing exactly what horrors were being done to Jessie. This was an exercise in spirit-breaking. 

    Now she was coming here to get him to marry her. 

   And if he refused, then he wouldn't be tortured by her. Not yet, anyway- he had no illusions that she wouldn't resort to the whip and the rest of it at some point. But here and now, she had something that worked much better- torturing Jessie. He could take being hurt himself, but her being hurt? No. A thousand times no.

    It couldn't all end like this, could it?

 ------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 4**

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No matter how often he looked through the book, he couldn't remember what Pidgeotto's bloody wingspan was. Anyway, who cared? The Pidgeotto didn't.

   "Hey! James!"  
   He looked up from the library book. "What is it, Jess?"  
   "Well, y'know the exam tomorrow?"  
   "Yeah- if we don't get 70% or higher, we flunk out. Why do you think I'm revising here?"  
   "Oh screw that, we'll pass," she said dismissively. "I say we prematurely celebrate our success tonight with a little something I bought from the bar nearby…"  
   Jessie lifted up a plastic bag full of cans, and grinned her evil little grin.

   "You _didn't_! I mean, you're underage!"

   "Bleurgh. Stupid laws. I'm 15, I'll soon be legally able to fuck, and yet I can't get a drink for two more years? Piss on that. Besides, I stunned the bartender with large wads of money that I liberated from the tyranny of the staff room."  
    James shrugged. Why not? 

*******************************************************************

"I think… 'm gonna be sick…"  
   James collapsed to his knees, unleashed his digested dinner and collapsed onto his back, looking up a moon that seemed to be melting slightly. The initial binge had been good, but since then some git had sneaked into his guts and dumped a load of gunk into it.

   On the other hand, Jessie had really drunk hard and was wandering around, laughing madly at something and waving a half-full can around. It seemed she'd overestimated how much she could drink. 

    "I do believe I am slightly sloshed," she said solemnly before breaking up into laughter again.

    James forced himself into sobriety and walked uncertainly over. "Y'know, we really should be getting back to the school."  
    "Ah, Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy!" Jessie giggled slightly and then fell into him. "Wanna fuck me, doncha? I can- thingy, wot's it called- can tell, yeah… See you looking at my tits…" 

    James blushed. "Well, er…"  
   She laughed again and tried to take another swig of the can, only to miss and pour it over the back of her shirt. "Yez ya do. Why- why not…" Grinning slightly, she reached down and began to unzip his trousers, while her other hand tried to remove her top. 

    James jumped back like he'd been sprayed by acid. "Whoa, whoa! Jessie, hold it, hold-"  
   "C'mon, we're just a few thingy… er… months, yeah, months from being legal 'nyway-"

   "Well, you're drunk."  
   "J'st a bit, dun let that put ya off…" She moved forwards, missed her footing and fell onto the grass. 

    James sighed and picked her up off the floor. One hand firmly around her waist, he began to guide her back towards the school. She seemed to find this hilarious and in between giggles rubbed her face into his neck while muttering drunken attempts at seduction. 

    A thought came to him- why not? She was asking for it, and with her this drunk she wouldn't remember it anyway-

    _Where the hell did that come from?_

    He chased the thought away angrily, stamping it back into the pit from whence it came. He really hoped that was just the drink talking, that made him actually contemplate that shit.

    Poketech was in sight. Wondering how the hell he'd get her up the stairs to her dorm room, he marched grimly on.

    And of course both of them went down to their First Year Exams, hungover and tired, and promptly failed miserably.

*********************************************************************

He looked at her, and she looked at him. They hadn't spoken, yet. He was determined to not show weakness. 

   Eventually, she spoke. "James dear, I think it is time you reconsidered the idea of our marriage."  
    "Oh yeah?"  
    "It is time you accepted your duties and responsibilities as a gentleman of our class, and-"  
    "Let Jessie go."  
    "Dear, it's not done to interrupt when-"  
    "I'm not marrying you unless I know she's safe."  
    Jessebelle pursed her lips. "I can't let her go, James dear. She's a criminal. Why would I-"

     "If you're going to keep her captive her, at least stop chaining her up, let her have some clothes and a toilet, and stop having the guards around here rape her!"  
     "Oh, James… She's just a common slut," she said. "It's not like she's really that affected by it."  
     "Shut the fuck up!" he screamed, starting dangerously towards her, the guard outside the cell and her custody of Jessie being the only thing stopping him from striking her down. "She'll _always_ be worth ten of you! And get this straight, I'm not doing _anything_ unless you stop torturing her." 

     "Oh, fine. You do have silly ideas regarding her, dear." She smiled. A cold smile, a calculated smile. Dead behind the eyes. "I'll go get things ready for you to be moved upstairs, and to change _her_ arrangement. The marriage will be in two days. And I am so glad you've finally come to your senses, James- no more of this roughness and disobedience."  
    He said nothing.

    At least he'd be getting out of the dungeon. There might be more options available from there, a way to turn this situation around.

    Because this was _not_ over, not by a long shot.

-

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I note someone has reviewed and said this is "the most horrible story I've ever had the misfortune to come across". This makes me proud. J


	5. 5

It was done now. James had finally seen sense, and soon would take his rightful place at her side, and she'd take her rightful place in co-ownership of his inheritance. His parents were off congratulating him now- the poor dear was still being quiet and believing he was better off as a lowly thief. 

   Ah well.

   Jessebelle lay in the chair and gazed around the fine settings of the lounge. Gold and paintings and antique furniture and it would soon be legally all hers. 

    Of course, she'd have to change the arrangements of the slut downstairs, like James had requested. She could move her into James' old cell, give her some old tatty clothes… Bleurgh. The very thought of being nice to that common slut made her want to retch. That evil little bitch that stole James away and had the audacity to wear her face.

    Fine, she'd give her a better cell and some clothes. But the violation of her would continue (and James didn't have to know about that, of course). She should suffer, constantly. Yes. 

    She noticed her hands were shaking again.

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 5**

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A few days ago. Team Rocket picked themselves off the ground, looked up at the cliff they'd been blasted off and collectively gave the finger to the watching Ursaring. 

    "Stuck in a forest wid dat Misty twerp and a load've horny Ursaring," said Meowth. "Dis may well be da worse day of my life. No, wait, I can think of some other worse days…"

     "I am goddamn sick of this!" snarled Jessie. "I'm sick of losing every damn Pokemon battle, I'm sick of being constantly blasted to the stratosphere, I'm sick of all the pain and the failure, and I am _sick_ of being with you two, dragging me down all the-"  
    "Back up, _back up_! Where'd dis all come from?"

    "I just spent hours in the company of those loathsome little brats, and I see them all _happy_ and _well-fed_ and unnaturally _successful_ while we starve, sleep in playgrounds and constantly get injured by every Pokemon under the fucking sun!" She threw up her hands. "I mean, why? Why did my life turn out to be this unsightly pestilence? And then I figure- hey, it's you two!"  
    James looked at her, hurt and bewildered. "What did I do?"  
    "You come up with all these stupid plans, you fuck up constantly in our missions and battles, and-"  
    "You could always have asked the boss to reassign you to a different team," he said sullenly. "_I_ didn't force you to stay. Hell, what've _we_ done? All the pain and horror that's happened to you has happened to us as well. And I didn't make it happen."  
    "Bull! I had to sleep with Giovanni because of you two!"  
    Jessie winced as soon as she'd said it. But the way James stared at her, shocked and bewildered, set her off again.

    "What, why do you think he never fired us? It's because before we left Kanto, he was fucking me constantly for two days, and he- he's just this evil, nasty little bastard, OK? He has this whole harem, half of which were abducted, some of whom are underage, and just touching him made me want to vomit. But I had to screw him because otherwise he would've decided we were dead weight and we'd have been split up and you two would be placed on suicide missions or experimented on or whatever. Not me- just you two. So I had to go through all that for you two and you weren't fucking worth it and I wish you were dead."

   And then she burst into tears.

   "I don't mean that, I don't, I… god, oh god…"

   James placed his hand on her shoulder, unsure of what to do or say.

   "Jess, it's OK, we're-"  
   "No it's not!" she screamed. "We have _nothing_ to live for! Our lives are nothing but pain and hardship! Any day now Ash could go to far and kill us! Or- or anything!"  
    "Yeah, I know. But that's kinda been us for most of our lives, and we're still here."  
    She sniffled slightly. "Maybe. Still, I'm so _sick_ of it all. I mean, why do we have to suffer all this? Why?"  
    Meowth ran his tongue over his teeth and nodded. "Good question dere. And y'know what? Screw it. I got an idea…"  
  
-

"Count Jonah D'rocketti, and my wife the lady Jessica- a table for three, please."  
   Words failed the waiter. In front of him were two figures doled up so much like aristocrats (top hats, coattails, huge frilly dresses with corset and the woman even had a bloody _fan_) and sounding so stereotypically aristocratic that it was almost certainly a put-on job. On the other hand, this restaurant often served rich cliental, and many of them really were like that. It was very odd.

   He pointed at Meowth in his suit and said "Sorry sir, we don't allow Pokemon in here."  
   Meowth burst into tears and Jessie swooped down to embrace him, her skirt nearly suffocating him. "There, there, Micheal! The doctors said they can make you look normal any day now!"

    "I- um, er, arg- so sorry about that…"  
    "Just show us to our seats," hissed James.

    Team Rocket soon began chomping their way through the meal. James, however, was fixated in one thing and eventually spoke up about it.

    "You don't really blame us for everything, do you?"  
    Jessie waved dismissively. "Come on, like we've never argued before. Just be glad I didn't smack you one this time round."  
    "Yes, but you don't normally reveal you screwed the boss."  
    "Meh, it was a few years ago. I don't really like thinking about it. Besides, Meowth's the one really obsessed with him, aren't you? Former flame, eh?"  
    "Die…"

    And with their usual talent, they buried the topic and the entire argument like they had so many others, and just continued to eat.

    Then they ran really quickly before the waiter could bring them the bill.

-

Jessie rolled onto her back, sweat-stained and exhausted, and grinned up at the sky. "Hey, we forgot the strap-on."  
    "We can use it next time," mumbled James, curling up slightly in the sleeping bag. "We also need to buy another double-sized sleeping bag. This one's getting all worn out, and yeesh, look at the colour. So last year."

    "We'll steal something better tomorrow."  
    There was a crunching noise to their right, like something stepping on a twig. Frowning, Jessie reached out for the bag with their weapons in it, when a small metallic object came hurtling down and landed at their feet.

     "Jessie, someone just threw their garbage at us."  
     I think I recognise that. Now where- Oh hell. We gotta move, that's a damn Spore Bomb-"

    The device went off, spraying sleep-inducing Spore across a seven-metre radius. Team Rocket were incapacitated within a second. 

    When James woke up, he was in a cell looking up at Jessebelle.

    "You can't hurt me," he said. "You don't love me." 

**********************************************************************

And a few days ago, Meowth finally shook off the effects of the Spore Bomb, noticed his friends were missing and followed their scent. It was mixed with several others, and it led him to a van's tracks. 

    They'd left him behind. They probably didn't view him as a threat. That was going to cost them.

    "All right den. War it is."


	6. 6

The marriage had gone ahead smoothly, and after it had come his first night of passion with Jessebelle.

    He'd felt like dirt.

    Luckily, she was out now, off doing the social-climbing thing with her acquaintances. He wanted to go visit Jessie, but the guards at her cell had strict orders not to let him through, so instead he walked the mansion gardens pretending Growlie was trotting alongside him instead of dead, struck down by old age without him ever knowing.

    The Magikarp swam through around in the pool, and he couldn't find it within himself to hate them for their existence. They were trapped here, same as him. Forced in a small little habitat designed for how pleasing it was to the eye rather than how healthy it was for the fish. Image was important round here.

     Briefly he thought about drowning himself.

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 6**

------------------------------------------------

It was an overcast, miserable day when the two of them cycled into Sunny Town, caked with dust and dirt from their month of constant travelling. The money they'd liberated from Pokemon Tech after being expelled for low grades was running short and lacking a Pokemon, their chances of getting anyway were slim. The only thing that stood between them and any kind of untimely death was Jessie's chain and her willingness to go for the head. 

    On top of that, James needed training wheels on his bike. It was embarrassing.

    "You are really letting the side down, James," growled Jessie. "You're making us look weak. I bet that's the reason that Fearow tried to eat us."  
    "What do we do here, Jess?"

    "Try and stay at the Pokemon Centre for as long as possible. Try to get some sort of Pokemon too, I guess."  
     "Uh, Jess? There's a group of big scary looking ruffians with bikes and leather heading towards us at high speed. Do we panic and flee?"  
     "Nah, let's see if we can nick their wallets."  
     The bike gang soon had them surrounded. The leader smirked slightly and got off his bike, winking slightly at the large-chested green-haired girl near him.

   "Well, well, well. What have we here?"  
   "They look like intruders, Chopper," she said.

   "And what do we do with intruders, Tyra?"  
   "Oh cut the shit," said Jessie, folding her arms. "And frankly, you just aren't scary with a haircut like _that_."  
    "I agree Jessie, it's a fashion atrocity! A reeking foul abomination slouching towards Babylon with grim determination, sustained by an unholy amount of gel…"

   Chopper made to lunge forward, but Jessie blocked his path. Smirking, she began to spin her chain.

    "You really want to start something here, buddy?"  
    "Look here you bitch, this is _our_ turf. Only members of the gang get through her without a fight- those the rules."  
    "Oh yeah? How about we join the gang then?"  
    "What, including that guy? He's still got training wheels!"  
    "True," said James, "but I have a body to die for!"

    Chopper shook his head. These two were _weird_. "If you're gonna join the gang, you gotta prove yourself first. Gotta show us your biking skills."  
    Showing their skills turned out to be a makeshift obstacle course near a construction site, complete with potholes, nasty sharp things and a ramp near a hole for them to jump. Jessie and James looked at it, looked at each other, nodded and then started off at the same time. 

    "You'll never do it!"  
    "Give it up!"  
    "Ha! Nearly fell in there!"  
    "Losers!"  
    "Yeah, you're gonna…"  
    "…"  
    "…"  
    "Well, _anyone_ should be able to do _that_. Nothing special."  
    "Yeah."

    "Y- Blimey, did you see that?!"

    "Did they just jump the whole while doing a handstand on their seats?!"  
    "Well, _she_ did- he appears to have crashed painfully."

    James climbed up, winced at the pain, then decided to at least make a good impression. Throwing his arms wide, he bellowed "Gravity may strike me down, but it is futile! I RISE AGAIN! BWAHAHAHAAHAohgodthatreallyhurtsow…"

-

Jessie swallowed another mouthful of ramen and then continued. "So you guys just cycle around looking tough?"  
   "Pretty much," said Tyra. "We live in a converted old warehouse, get money from Pokemon trainers we defeat and any little jobs people round town hire us for- because hey, if you need security in a hurry, we're your guys."  
    "This warehouse has rooms, right?"  
    "Yeah, converted offices. You two'll have to share a room though, we're a bit strapped for space. But I'm guessing that won't be a problem for you two…"  
    "Lose the smirk. I still have this big nasty chain."  
    "Yeah, she smacked a Fearow in the head with it once," said James in-between mouthfuls. "Didn't work though, so we had to run for it. Probably works better on people."  
    "However, with a cool chain comes great responsibility. I must only use it on people who attack me, and tax collectors."

   "But we're sixteen. We don't pay tax."  
   "I'm thinking ahead."

   "Well, first we need to get you two kitted out," said Chopper. "If you're in the gang, you need to wear leather in large amounts. I mean, you can't be a bike gang wearing denim, can you? You'd look stupid."  
   A few minutes later, they all had to put up with James whining about why Jessie got to wear tight leather pants and he couldn't.    
  


-

Tyra had decided to show the two of them the night-life of Sunny Town. The night-life consisted of one nightclub that played music of the highest shit, and they made a hasty retreat. 

   "My ears burn in the pits of HELL!" screamed James.

   "The music wasn't that bad-"  
   "Bloody well was."  
   The trio walked down the street, arguing as they went, and it took them a while to realise they were being followed. By that point, they were surrounded.

    Jessie did a quick count- eight of them, all dressed similar to the bike gang, some sporting knives. She nudged Tyra. "Friends of yours?"  
    "Rival gang," she said. Her face had gone pale.

    "Rival gang? Oh sweet Jesus, we've fallen into a Hollywood movie cliché. There'll be jive-talking black guys with afro's coming round the corner next, and then gay people acting like- well, like James to be frank…"  
   The gang leader stepped forwards, knife out and being brandished. He was leering slightly as he looked in Jessie and Tyra's direction, and that was enough to get James to stand in his way.

    "Hello!" he said brightly, while his mind was awash with fear and tension. "Sorry, but we're not interested in becoming Jehovah's Witnesses."  
    "Who the fuck're you? The new fish?"  
    "Well, judging from lack of gills, scales, need to live in water, my having an ability to fertilise eggs outside of the female body and other such traits, I have to say that neither I nor Jessie are members of any of the fish genus' ranging from flounder to invertebrates."  
    He was being stupid. He was going to get hurt. 

    He didn't care. He was having _fun_, finally cutting loose completely, doing what the hell he liked and who were these bastards to come here, threatening him and his friends, trying to crush them underfoot like everyone else in life had done so far?  
     The gang leader sneered and stepped forwards, knife pointed at James' face and his voice a low hiss. "You are dead. We are going to kill you, and we're going to take these two bitches and fuck them like they want us t-"

    He didn't get any further, because Jessie had heard him and moving quickly, she slipped her chain around his neck and pulled down hard. His breath was cut off.

    James ran forward and slammed his feet into another gang member's knee-cap, getting a satisfactory crack. Dodging retaliatory blows, he slammed his fist into the eye of another. Behind him, Tyra was punched in the face, recovered and swept the legs out from under her assailant. 

     The gang leader was on the verge of collapse. Jessie removed the chain, kicked him in the groin, and then whipped her chain out. The faces of two more gang members were smashed open.

     "You wankers call this _fighting_?! You want to take us on, you threaten us with your shrivelled excuses for penises, and then you go down _this_ easy?!" Laughing wildly, she grabbed hold of an incoming fist and moved to twist the arm behind the attacker's back. "And I can't believe you let yourself open for _that_, you fucking _moron_!"

     The gang members backed down- the ones that hadn't been incapacitated, anyway. The three of them looked at each other, proud at their handiwork, and then ran for their bikes before the enemy tried something again. 

    Jessie and James blazed through the streets, pedalling madly while screaming in triumph.

    "James, you kicked arse! Nice one!"  
    "You too Jess, you sexy thing!"  
    "Indeed I did! We are the unstoppable! Ha! We strike out against the enemy, to protect the world from devastation!"  
     James grinned slightly and quickly replied with "And to unite all people within our nation?"  
     Jessie laughed- this was getting fun. "And to denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
     "To extend our reach to the stars above!"

     "Jessie!"  
     "James!"

     "Blasting off and away at the speed of light!"  
     "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"  
     "You guys are on the fucking pot, I swear to God!" yelled Tyra.

-

James leapt onto the bed back-first, still suffering from the rush and laughing fit to burst for no real reason. 

    Jessie looked at him, a slight grin on her face. It was rather cute watching him do that. And she knew whatever happened that he needed her and would always be near her because of it, and that he believed that she beautiful, talented and all that. And that he would sneak longing glances at her, hormones making him their little puppet and warping his mind so that he'd want nothing more than to have sex with her… and he'd never say a word, because he was afraid that she might be disgusted and leave him.

    And throughout Pokemon Tech, every other boy had looked at her like that, their eyes betraying that they all viewed her as the bad girl, the wild slutty one, and all they saw her as was either a bitch or someone they'd like to fuck.

    And James didn't. He tried to make sure she hadn't noticed that he thought like that, like he was ashamed that he could be thinking of her like that.

    And right here, right now, still caught up in the rush of the fight and flight, the euphoria of being somewhere they actually wanted to be, she changed everything.

    "James."  
    He looked up. And his eyes widened as Jessie removed her jacket and top, and then, slowly, smirking, undid her bra and moved on to her pants.

   "Jess?" His throat had dried up and inside his head something was throbbing. "What's going on?"  
   "What do you _think_ is going on?"  
   "Aheheh… I really couldn't say, um…"  
   "Ah, James," she smiled. "You think of me naked all the time, and now you get scared when I actually am? We're both 16 now, none of us believe in getting married before screwing- so what's the big fear?"  
    "I don't know." He looked away. Looking at her, his eyes always drawing to her crotch, her breasts, her legs, it made him feel hot and uncomfortable and a surge of other feelings, and he'd gotten an erection and he felt ashamed about it. "I… look, this can't work, you're just… you're beautiful and perfect, and I'm… I'm just a worthless screw-up and I don't feel right looking at you like this when I'm not good enough for you."  
     She shook her head. "You're not worthless and you're not a screw-up. You are, however, someone I love and who I like the idea of screwing. Trust me."  
     And he did trust her.

    And he looked up and smiled faintly before he started to take his clothes off. He didn't bother trying to be erotic or whatever- he just threw them off, and then lay back, unsure of what to do next and waiting for her to make the first move. 

    She'd put her leather jacket back on, as well as her leather pants, left down just enough to leave her crotch visible. He frowned and opened his mouth to ask why she was doing this, but she shook her head, and then smirked again and stuck her tongue out, wiggling it like a snake.

   She got on top and pressed him down into the bed, the feel of the leather sending a shiver through him. He looked up at her, her eyes gleaming with aggression and lust.

   "I love you."  
   "Yeah. I know."

********************************************************************

"Now, me and Arbok tracked da van dat took them away. Their scent was on it. And we track it to a car rental place near da Johto International Airport. Now dis says to me dat we ain't dealing wit a rival organisation here- dey don't use rental vans. And why would they want dose two anyway? So, we're dealin' wit someone else. An individual wit a grudge. And dey must be outside of Johto coz of the airport, and dey couldn't smuggle dose two onto a public plane, so dey musta used a private one.

    "And Team Rocket does surveillance on airports an' ports an' such. So we come ta you."  
   The Rocket looked at Meowth with disdain. "I don't know why you care what happens to those morons, but what the hell, it's your time. Let's see what we've got."  
   Meowth folded his arms and waited. The Rocket Watchers were arrogant bastards, drawing information from transport hubs and city centres, watching the movements of the people, and this gave them a little god complex. Buggers to deal with, but they were useful.

    "Ah, here we go- seven private planes left the airport soon after your team-mates were abducted. Here's what they were, their registered owners and the addresses of said owners. Printing it now."  
   Meowth ripped it from the printer it was finished and scanned it quickly. His lips drew back into a snarl as he saw Jessebelle on the list.

    "Anything else you want?"  
    "Yeah. Use of da phone. I need ta order something from da main base."  
    "And what's that?"  
   "_Weapons._"


	7. 7

Back in the bike gang days, they would wake up every day in the same bed, having spent the night by having passionate sex, and they'd look at each other for a bit before going off for the day, coming back to the warehouse and screwing each other again at night. And sometimes they would spend hours talking in over-melodramatic romantic conversations, pulling flowers out of nowhere and scattering them about. And sometimes she'd hit him, and sometimes they argued and then she hit him, and sometimes they actually just slept, and sometimes they'd deliberately go out to pick fights with the rival gangs in order to make themselves hornier.

   And they always thought the other would be there, that they were unstoppable and a white tomorrow was waiting for them.

   Now he woke up in bed with a monster, and he spent his days being bored, being suicidal and praying she wouldn't want to have sex tonight. And she woke up in a cell, spending her days being bored, being angry, being raped by her guards.

    No white tomorrow. No hope. 

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 7**

------------------------------------------------

"We're having a dinner party tonight, dear."  
    "Anyone I know?"  
    "Oh, the old families."

    He knew them. Pretentious evil-minded bastards. 

   "That's nice dear."  
    He resisted the urge to drum his fingers on the dining room table. It wasn't proper, and it would get him hurt. Worse, it could get Jessie hurt. 

    "Darling, before that, I would like to visit the prisoner."  
    "Why do you want to visit that jumped up little slut?" she snapped, her mood changing from passive superiority to enraged spite. 

    "We do have an agreement."

    She smiled, slipping back into the mask she wore. "You're right dear, we do. You can do so for an hour after six."  
    "Thank you, dear."

    He continued to eat his breakfast, wishing there were donuts with it, before getting up and heading off to the gardens again. Once he was gone, Jessebelle called one of the guards over.

    "The slut in the basement. Put her through hell before six. And remind her what will happen to her if she tells my husband about it."

-

"See, at least _you_ aren't nasty to me." 

   The Magikarp happily gathered around the bread he'd thrown for them while James watched with a slight smile.

   "I don't really know why I keep talking to you. Do you even have ears? Ah well. Need someone to talk to, or I'd go mad. And y'know, after saying that I get the urge to suddenly go 'Blblblblbl' and dance about in a weird way. And I would anywhere else, but if I'm seen here, then…

    "Yeah."  
   James looked around at the garden, the beautiful place he'd loved as a child and still did now. He loved the roses, the trees, the little river, the whole deal. But now he was looking at it and he was starting to see something nasty in it. It was the layout that did it- it wasn't real, it wasn't like it would be in the wild. It was fake. Fake like so many things about his family, and he'd spent his life trying to get away from them, and now reached out and pulled him back.

    "It's all shit," he said. "Might as well kill myself now. Jessie said that once. And I really would like to. God help me, I would like to, but Jessebelle would be angry and take it out on Jessie. And I don't want her hurt- oh bugger it, she's already _been_ hurt here. And I can't do a fucking thing and it hurts. It claws at me, all the time." He squatted and looked over at the Magikarp again. "This has to turn out all right, doesn't it? It can't stay like this forever. Right?"  
  
-

She paced around her cell, around and around, occasionally lashing out at the wall with a  jumping kick.

   "I don't know where to begin, don't want to hear it again…"

    In her mind's eye, Jessebelle was all around her and she kicked out again and again. She sang all the time now. It kept her spirits up, stopped her getting bored and lonely and cracking again like she had earlier.

    "I don't believe anymore…"  
    Depression had to be fought, it wasn't an option, but dear God it was so hard to try and remain strong. She needed someone, anyone. She needed James to remind her how god-like she was. She needed someone she could hit without fear of reprisal.

    "And this is all I know, I know I've heard it before, I don't believe anymore…"

    And the door opened and the guards came in.

    "Miss us, bitch?"  
   Jessie glared up and said nothing. The first guard in backhanded her, knocking her into the wall, and signalled for his buddies to move in. Grabbing her, they tore her clothes off and forced her down…

    …and she laughed. Over and over, in an ugly grating cackle, she laughed.

    "What are you doing?"  
    She stopped abruptly and grinned. "You're all going to die. Once I get out of here, you're all going to die."  
    "Shut up."  
    "Every last one of you."  
    "Shut up."  
    "Don't like the truth, eh?"  
    "The truth is that you're ours for a few hours and we're going to make you-"

    "Blah, blah, blah! Heard it before! You think I'm going to just-"  
    They gagged her and then began.

*****************************************************************

Jessie shrugged and wiped the blood off her knuckles onto the unconscious gang leader's face. Waving at the bar patrons, she and James walked out into the city street.

    "We are the great Darwinian theory proof. We are the fit and we kick their posteriors."  
    "They do seem to get weaker every time we meet them, don't they Jess?"  
    "Yeah, they waste valuable fighting time running away scream 'Not the chain, god not the chain'. I wonder why?"  
    "And Chopper et al had actual problems with these guys? Maybe he just needs to crossdress. That could be the reason for our success."  
     "Heh. Come on, let's go. Onward to the white tomorrow!"  
    "Amen and halleluiah."


	8. 8

The world was theirs. They had joined Team Rocket, they were the rising stars of the organisation and the white tomorrow was within reach.

    And then they attacked the Viridian Pokemon Centre and their lives went to hell for four long years.

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 8**

------------------------------------------------

The cell door was opened, and Jessie span round, her eyes blazing with rage and her face contorted into a snarl. And then she relaxed- it wasn't the guards, it was James.

   And she found herself caught up into a tight embrace, tears running down the side of her neck.

   "Oh god, I've missed you… I've missed you…"

   And to his horror she pushed him away.

   "Don't look at me!" she snapped. "Not at my face!"  
   "Jess?"  
   "My face. She destroyed my face. I-" She turned away, the shame consuming her. "I look ugly now. I don't want to be looked at. I'm ugly. Just… don't."

    He looked at her face. He looked at the scabbed-over tear across her left side. And still crying, he shook his head and said: "You could never look ugly to me."  
   She tried to remain strong. But then all the pain and grief and horror of the last few days come rushing up and hit her, and she grabbed hold of him and she began to cry along with him. And they both fell to their knees, remaining in the embrace and crying like they would never stop. Neither wanted to break the moment- they'd spent too long apart, and they didn't want to again. They wanted to stay together, embraced and sobbing like this until the end of the world.

    Jessie was the one who stopped crying first. She grinned weakly and gently head-butted James.

    "Now you get me going, you bastard,"  
    "I-I-I'm suh-sorry. I-It's just… Jesus, I thought I'd n-never see you again…" He tried to choke back the sobs, and failed miserably. "I just can't take it up there. Not without you. I need you. I-I-I… I have to fucking sleep with Jessebelle, it's…"  
     "You _what_?" Red mist obscured her vision. "That utter fucking _bitch_. Oh, she's gonna pay for that. She puts me through all this, and then she rapes my friends?! Fuck that, fuck her, when I get out-"

    And then she paused, and she stopped.

   "Who am I kidding? I'm not getting out of here ever."  
   "Don't talk like that."  
   "It's the truth. We've failed. Story of our lives, isn't it? Failure and pain."  
   "That's bullshit. There were some good times throughout all of that."  
   "Oh yeah. And they were because we were together. You think that's gonna happen any more? How often do you think the bitch'll let you come down here? I mean, she hates the idea, she-"

    Jessie fell silent. She didn't want him to know what was going on. But the silence only confirmed his fears.

    "She's been having them rape you still, isn't she," he said dully. "Even though we made a deal that you wouldn't."  
    "Yeah. They did it a lot today- trying to make me suffer so she feels better about letting me see you. No, _don't_ look like that, it's not your fault this happened, and I'll smash your fucking face in if you say that."  
   There was brief silence, and then James gently pulled out from the embrace. He walked over to the far wall, muscles tense and his mind a searing flame, and then smashes his fist into the wall. 

    "So did that make you feel better?" asked Jessie sardonically.

    "No."

    She got up and started to pace. "I can't deal with this shit. Not any longer. We can't get out of this and it's not going to get better. So tomorrow I'm going to attack the guards and make it so they have to shoot me. Go down fighting." And her voice did not tremble, but stayed neutral, resolute. She looked over to him as he stood in fear, and her face was expressionless. "You'll make your own arrangements?"  
   He swallowed. "Yeah."

   "That's good. The final blast off, off to the stars above and all that." 

    "Jessie?"  
    "Yeah?"  
    "Please hold me."

******************************************************************

The dinner party was in full swing, and death crept towards the mansion in his trenchcoat and Desert Eagle guns. 

   A great serpent came silently through the grass. He looked towards the figure, jerked his head towards the mansion walls and nodded. The figure smiled and turned to the others. They stood, frightened but ready.

   "We move in three minutes, guys. Take positions."

   The group dispersed, and he began to load his guns.

    "Prepare for trouble, youse bastards. Prepare for trouble."


	9. 9

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Koffing appears in this story because I realised he never evolved into Weezing, and that we only saw Weezing in the show because of a mass hallucination. And if anyone says different, they're just  a dirty Communist…

-

"We should really kill that fucking twerp."  
    "Hear hear," chorused Meowth and James.

    "Four times. _Four times _he's used grievous bodily harm against us-"

    "And dat time he used Caterpie da Penis Pokemon to do its most suggestive attack."  
    "Yeah, that too. So our path is clear- we must use a massive chainsaw on him."  
    "Chainsaw?! How passé! No, we have to use napalm. It's all the rage these days."  
    "Chainsaws are cheaper."  
    "Since when did _we_ care about the budget?"

    "Yeah, I woz meanin' to talk to youse guys 'bout that-"

    "We wouldn't really kill anyone though," said Jessie hurriedly. "Course we wouldn't."  
    James was silent for a moment, and then he said softly: "I would. If someone killed or hurt one of my friends, I would kill them."  
     "Violence and revolution are da only pure acts," said Meowth.

     "I knew we shouldn't have let you watch that _If…. _movie."

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 9**

------------------------------------------------

The dinner party was in full swing, and James' mind had switched off already. Marched around by his wife- hi, this is Lord and Lady Archer, you remember them, old friends of the family; oh, and you have to meet the local Mayor, one of the old families don't you know; and here's the Lucans, flew in from their manor in Johto…

    He hated every single fucking one of them.

    Minutes clumped together and dragged on and on until they became hours. The inane prattle flowed, and he forced himself to keep up with it. It was only for one more day, and then blissful release.

     And then came the sound of explosions.

-

The bombs had turned the wall into so much rubble, and the guards were already rushing towards it, Houndoor in tow. Meowth grinned, signalled to the others and charged.

    "**FOOTBALL HOOLIGANS!**"

    He leapt into the air as gunfire tore through his last position, whipped out his guns and fired as he came down- one guard got hit in the chest, the other the arm. A feat that would have a human sprawled on the floor, but he could do it with ease.

     The first guard was getting up- they had Kevlar and his guns weren't strong enough to penetrate. Dodging the next shot, Meowth aimed and fired at the man's head.

     Arbok smashed up through the ground, sending a Houndoor flying before lashing out with Acid attacks. From behind them, Victreebel provided covering fire with Razor Leaf.

    A bullet tore into Meowth's tail; he gritted his teeth and breathed in sharply before returning fire. He glanced around- the guard's were starting to surround them.

    "Koffing! Now!"  
    The Pokemon happily floated across the battlefield, spraying gas down at the nearest guards. They were confused as the attack wasn't doing anything to them, but then a few of them saw Meowth light a petrol bomb and they started to run.

     The others didn't stand a chance when the bomb was hurled into the flammable gases.

    He was blown backwards by the explosion, howling in triumph as he went.

-

Even the most inbred of the guests knew something was up when the explosion happened. Already, more guards were leaving the mansion and heading out to the battle.

   James glanced around quickly. Nobody was looking at him.   
   He had no idea what was going on, but he had an opening.

   He ran.

-

They'd manage to advance after the explosion but the new wave of guards had them pinned down now. Wobbufet worked as the defence, Countering bullets back at the enemy, but he was the only one of them getting results. 

   Meowth was becoming uncomfortably aware that he hadn't planned very far ahead and he probably should have. He didn't know what to do now except continue to shoot.

    The sound of ripping flesh and Victreebel was down, his side torn open and chlorophyll gushing out.

    "MOTHERFUCKERS!"  
    Arbok reared up and spat Acid at the gunman's face- the man collapsed, screaming briefly before the acid reached his brain. With the serpent covering him, Meowth recalled Victreebel to his Pokeball.

    Shit, shit… I don't even know if dis will stop him bleedin' to death… I dunno what to do, I don't…

    The next bullet hit his leg.

-

He ran through the halls, down the stairs, through the basement. Hardly daring to breathe, let alone slow down. This was it, this was what they needed. 

    Down he went into the depths, past the silent disapproving faces of his ancestors' portraits. Down through the instruments of torture Jessebelle loved even while she pretended to be civilised and proper. Down to Jessie's cell, to where the two guards at the door saw him and barred his path.

    "Out of the way."  
    "We have our orders. Leave now or we'll have to make you leave."  
    "Oh yeah?" He bared his teeth, clenched his fists. "Do you have any comprehension of who you're dealing with? Of what I've done? You think I'm some harmless faggoty weakling? Oh, everyone thinks that. Oh yeah. They all make the mistake of underestimating me and the others.  
     "There was this one time, we came across this newbie trainer near Fuchsia. She was just ten and she'd been raped by some 8-Badge bigshot. And that happens more times than you would like to think. So what we did was track him down and then we beat the living shit out him, had Arbok poison him and left him to die a slow, wasting death _and I still feel fucking glad we did it_."  
   He stepped forward, madness dancing in his eyes and his body a tense knot of muscle. The guards were starting to sweat.

    "I am James Kojirou Morgan, I am Rocket, I am survivor of a childhood of horrors you can't begin to understand and I am Death to you if you dare to stand in my way."  
     And then he smashed his foot into the first guard's kneecap, punched him at both eyes, tore his gun from his grasp and slammed him to the floor. And pointed the gun at the other guard, safety flicked off.

     "See, that's what happens when you underestimate me. And when you get too convinced by my lovely lovely acting skills. Now- drop the cell keys and your gun on the floor and RUN."

-

"AARG SHIT FUCK BUGGER EAT YOUR BABIES FOR THIS ARG"

   He'd been lucky the bullet hadn't hit him directly, or his leg would have been near blow off. Still, the glancing blow was enough to give him a serious wound and in a few minutes he'd be down and out.

    So he fired back again and again, hoping to take a few of them with him.

-

He unlocked the door and managed to take a step before Jessie leapt at him and embraced him, pressing herself against him while they kissed deeply, the two of them reunited and free again.

     "The hell you're getting away with this."  
    And there stood Jessebelle behind them, gun in hand.


	10. 10

"Mmmmm. Ah. Ngn. Agagaga-"

   Jessie gave a muffled cry of annoyance and reared upwards from his crotch, spitting.

   "Warn me! _Warn me_ next time you're about to do that! Contrary to the lies of the porn industry, it doesn't taste nice!"  
   "Sorry." He grinned sheepishly and then burst out giggling.

   "Anyway, what sounds of ecstasy were those?!"  
   "Maybe you're not trying hard enough."  
   "That a challenge, foolish mortal?"

   "Well, yes." James scratched his neck and yawned slightly. "You think we'll still be doing this when we're old?"  
    "We're never gonna be old. When you're old, you start to wrinkle, get ugly, get weak. I never want to be old. I want to die young."  
    "Yeah?"  
    "Yeah." Her voice was wistful. "Go out in flames while you're still young and in your prime. And you'll be young forever. That's the way to go."

------------------------------------------------

**Sweet Poison: a tale of relationships**

** Chapter 10**

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Jessebelle's rage destroyed her surroundings, leaving nothing in the world but her, the traitor, the slut and the gun. 

    The gun. Glorious gun. Cleaner of the world.

    "Get out of the way," said James. Eyes narrow, jaw tense. Hands as fists.

    "You are not leaving here with that _bitch_. I'll kill you before that. Kill you before you turn your back on your responsibilities again."  
     "Oh, fuck you. _Fuck you_! You capture us, you torture us, you rape me and you have her raped over and over again, and you dare to fucking suggest I'm in the wrong?!"  
     "I did what I had to do!" she screamed, and tears ran from her eyes. "You, you were supposed to be dignified, civilised. You were supposed to mine. But you wouldn't be like you were meant to. And we had to discipline you and you still wouldn't stop. And then you ran off with _her_! How dare you?! She's a foul evil whore! She's beneath you! Any lowly bastard could have her, and you sully yourself, sully _me_ by going off with her! What, _what _does she offer that is so damn wonderful?!"

     "Well, I guess it's because I actually love him for what he is," said Jessie. "And because I never tried to torture him until he acted nothing like he is. For fuck's sake, you just get off on the torture, don't you?"  
    "SHUT UP!"  
    "You get off on it and you like to pretend to yourself that it's necessary-"

    "_SHUT UP! YOU UNDERSTAND NOTHING!_"

    "- because otherwise you'd have to realise you are the shit of the earth." Jessie glanced at her trembling arm, where the gun was aimed. She looked at James, and he nodded. "Y'know, I bet you pulled the wings of bugs when you were a kid," she continued. "And nobody bothered to tell you that it was wrong. So you just graduated to doing it to people."  
     "_You hit him! I've seen you!_"  
     "But that is different," said James. "And I love her."

     Jessebelle screamed once more, her soul breaking as she did, and she fired.

    And missed completely, and James ran forwards and his fist smashed into her face and she went down.

    And he punched again.

    And again.

    And again and again and again.

    For every instance of pain and suffering. For years of fear and self-loathing. For forcing him to retreat into himself for so long. For what she'd done to Jessie. 

    Everything, repaid in violence and hate and the urge to kill.

    "James_. James_."  
    He stopped, and his fists were dripping with blood and he looked at what he'd done and started to cry.

    "I-I didn't meant to- to go that far. I didn't. I-"

    "I know," she said, gently pulling him up. "Come on, let's get the fuck out of here."

-

Load up on guns, bring your friends.

   They reached one of the rooms with a window, planning to head out that way. They'd only encountered a few guards, and they hadn't lasted long. A few head shots and all that was left was a body and a blood splatter across the wall. It was surprisingly easy to deal with the monsters that had seemed so unstoppable before.

    From the window, they could see a small battalion pinning down Meowth and their Pokemon. 

    "I'll take the ones on the left, you the right."  
    Guns aimed at their backs, held steady and then an explosion of glass later there were two more bodies. Guards spun round to return fire only to find the Pokemon firing at their backs. Quickly they organised themselves so they could face both sides and fire.

   Bullets tore through the window hole and the wall around it, demolishing ornaments and bits of furniture. Jessie fired back, laughing madly as the enemy went down again and again. The air was full with the sound of gunshots, death screams and Pokemon attacks.

    Koffing spat out his Sludge attack, and several of the guards found their guns clogged up, unable to fire. They couldn't fire at the Pokemon and the group found themselves caught in a crossfire.

    It was over quick. Jessie and James leapt out of the hole, grabbed the wounded Meowth and headed for the mansion's exit. Behind them, a few shots were fired by the new wave of guards but that was just for show as the Rocket's were running off anyway.

    "Meowth, I want to bear your children for this!"  
    "Thanks Jimmy-boy! Now can ya run faster? I'm bleedin' ta death here!"  
    There was a mini-van parked near the mansion walls and the Rockets piled into it, recalling Meowth into a Pokeball until they could find a Pokemon Centre for him and Victreebel. As he started the engine, he looked back upon the hated mansion and was surprised when Wobbuffet handed him a loaded rocket launcher with a quick salute.

    "How about we do this together, Jess?"  
    "You bet!"  
    The top floor rooms made a satisfying explosion when shot, and they cheered as they did so.

-

Any other couple would be severely damaged by this experience. But once Meowth and Victreebel had been fixed up at the Pokemon Centre, they managed to forget about it all. Push it back into the dark corners of their minds with everything else that squirmed and festered in there, and they went back to living and loving as they had before.

    They do this often. They've had experience at it and it's the only way they can cope with their lives. And being together helps with that.

    This may not be a healthy way to live. 

    But that is how they live, have lived, will live.

    As then, as now.

-

"To protect the world from devastation."  
 "To unite all people within our nation."  
 "To denounce the evils of truth and love."  
 "To extend our reach to the stars above."  
 "Jessie."  
 "James."

THE END


End file.
